Wednesday, March 21, 2012

When police officers have their criminal records expunged

Recently a former Fayetteville police officer was convicted for threatening his former wife’s current husband with both a gun and a knife.

After his guilty plea to a felony count of aggravated assault, plus the battery misdemeanor, he was sentenced to a $1,000 fine and three years of probation.

He will also be eligible to have his criminal record expunged, wiped away. Nothing to see here, folks, just move along now.

So, you might be thinking, does this mean he can just go back and be a cop again? Well, Quarrelsome Reader, I found this bit of information yesterday on an interesting website:

The restoration of rights and privileges as defined in the act of expungement has limitations. The extent to which these rights are limited has been determined by reason. A convicted felon with an expunged record of that conviction has the liberty to become a police officer, but will not likely be able to get the firearms permit necessary to become a law enforcement officer.

http://criminal.laws.com/expungements/arkansas-expungement-law

Not likely, but not entirely impossible to get the permit necessary to obtain the firearms permit. And are there those who would hire someone with an expunged criminal record?

Then gain, they may just put you in a job where you may not need a gun.

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Well, he could always become a “private contractor”

I found this little tidbit during my Google stalking this morning, and thought I’d just pass it on.

that first statement is wrong I’m a convicted felon assault 2nd degree intent to do bodily harm with a deadly weapon (Gun related charge) and I got my rights to bare arms reinstated in 2008. I can carry a fire arm as a civilian but I can't carry one as a federal employee thats why I’m in Iraq hodgie hunting as a civilian contracted employee..

http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/688461

And yeah, private contractors were roaming the streets of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

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“More study is needed.”: How business treats science

I've been thinking about a book (long out of print - my copy sits in a desk drawer, the pages falling out) I first read almost 40 years ago, Los Angeles: AD. 2017, by Philip Wylie. Based on his script for The Name Of The Game, directed by a very young Steven Spielberg, it tells the story of publisher Glenn Howard, a man who falls asleep in 1971, and awakes in the next century to find a world devastated by pollution.

Early in the novel, before Glenn Howard has his tumble into the future, he is attending a conference organized by representatives from industry and science, each approaching the pollution problem from different angles. When one scientist suggests that studies be undertaken to gauge the exact approaches that should be taken, his suggestion is greeted with great enthusiasm.

Once he has left the room, however, the reason the industrial magnates were so pleased becomes clear. Once such a study was undertaken, it might take years, even decades, to prepare and finish. In the meantime, it would be “business as usual.”

Has anything changed since then?

Of course, he also wrote the great When Worlds Collide.

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Quote of the Day

Patriotism can flourish where racism and nationalism are given no quarter. We should never mistake patriotism for nationalism. A patriot is one who loves his homeland. A nationalist is one who scorns the homelands of others. - Johannes Rau